The Flight of the Earls: How One Night Changed Ireland Forever

"The Flight of the Earls: How One Night Changed Ireland Forever" takes you deep into one of the most pivotal events in Irish history. In this video, we uncover the dramatic story of how, on a single night in 1607, two powerful Gaelic lords—Hugh O’Neill, Earl of Tyrone, and Rory O’Donnell, Earl of Tyrconnell—left Ireland, marking the end of the Gaelic order and opening the door to English colonization. We’ll explore the political tensions and cultural struggles that led to their exile, the impact of their departure on the Irish people, and the long-lasting effects of English rule in Ireland, including the Plantation of Ulster. This historical event not only shaped Ireland’s past but also laid the foundations for centuries of conflict. Join us as we dive into the consequences and legacy of the Flight of the Earls, a turning point that continues to echo in Irish history today.

[seanohare]

Thank God still irish gaelic speaking in Ireland so still alive and kicking

[robertfindley]

I am from Scots/Irish in descent and only wish that the Irish settle the differences and make Ireland one nation once again.

[dbrennan]

It's interesting how the event uses Earl, which was a foreign title granted by a foreign ruler, instead of Taoiseach (chieftain.)
It emphasises the fact that the last great chieftains of ancient bloodlines had abandoned their most ancient privileges and responsibilities in favour of a meaningless, worthless title that resulted in them emigrating with (metaphysically) nothing.
They set sail with their own people on the shore cursing their names for their unspeakable betrayal.

If I remember correctly, those families were accepted into the Spanish nobility and some of their descendants helped to free South America from imperial control.

May my people witness another Flight of the Earls very very soon.

[jamesgale]

Same happened in Scotland 200 years later; part of me comes from a displaced Forbes.

[VeryFinnishProblems]

How historically accurate do you think your visuals are?

[MarvinofMars]

The Mustering point for the flight of the Earls was in Mid Ulster Stewartstown Lough. Near to Tullyhogue Fort ( A Celt high fort). This whole area was cleared to the West of Ireland for the lucky ones! Discovered later the Muster point was 50 yards from my front door. Near to ruin of an old castle at the Lough. Dare say it was sacked the by the English.
A costume re-enactment did occur from the Lough dozens walked from Stewartstown to Lough Swilly 100 miles away North. No markers for the Spot, just a Stone memorial in the Village.

[TonyM]

Ireland was made up of about 150 minor kingdoms. The concept of Ireland as one nation and one people wasn’t really understood, as it was a clan or family based society.

[Bowl_of_roses]

Elizabeth I was known to be a redhead! Not as depicted.

[NorthernIrishCitizensAlliance]

A reply to a comment. Thanks for sharing your views and your comment.
Yes the alliances between the various Irish Nations were indeed complex and changed over time, but at no period was there a sovereign Irish government ruling the Island of Ireland. All the ducking and weaving in the world won’t change that fact. The English ruled Ireland by conquest and set out to ethnically cleanse the Irish nations into one nation loyal to them.
Your comments on the English Pale in Leinster are a gross understatement of the role of the English invaders in this region. It is called a Pale because of the ditch and bank defence structures used to keep the Irish out. The “Statutes of Kilkenny”, passed by a Dublin administration, not London, demonstrate the extreme measures taken to exclude anything Irish from contaminating the English settlers of the English Pale, and its capital Dublin. The English Pale continues in its expansionist ambitions, targeting the last surviving Irish nation, Ulster.
It is a betrayal of our Irish ancestors to use English propaganda to rewrite our history, so the current trend to distort historical facts to fit a political agenda, is a gross betrayal of Ireland.
Thanks again for your comments.

[lorddoire]

The are called Earls but are Prince's in their own Country before the Crown changed their titles.

[billynuts]

always thought that they abandoned the ordinary Irish and left them at the mercy of the English

[Mary-Kpie-pw]

if they had been called The Chieftains, the Brittish would have really been confused as they did not understand Gaeilge. They probably thought the Irish and even their own people were not articulating properly and so ignored their voices.

[bunyip]

Couple of people on here more concerned about hair colour than what would be called ethnic cleansing and/or genocide today.

[FrankWeil-ibfw]

Strange, theres ONeils in Portugal from many centuries... like Alexandre O'Neill, the poet. We know he has Irish origins.His ancestor João O'Neill (Irish: Seán Ó Néill) had emigrated from Ireland in 1740. He lived in Porto and Minho.

[brianmadigan]

The Plantation of Ulster, the greatest la d grab in European history.

[NorthernIrishCitizensAlliance]

The flight of the Earls was the final defeat of an independant Ulster that had existed for centuries after the defeat of the Southern Irish by the English in the English Pale. Ulster had never been part of any sovereign Irish government, had always been independent, until conquered by the British. After the flight of the Earls. Dublin in the English Pale Kingdom of Leinster supervised the Ulster plantation ethnic cleansing of the Northern Irish, initially with English settlers which failed, eventually resorting to importing relatives of the Northern Irish, the Scots. Freedom for Ulster would be its own government free of English, Dublin and London proxies. Check the actual Irish history, not the Leinster English Pale version, invented to eradicate the Irish Nations once and for all.

[amandawright]

The kingdom of Dalriada
Consisted of North Antrim, The Western isles and the west of Scotland. One people.
The Ulster Scots are not all planters.
The ignorance and lack of historical knowledge is what has fed the divide.
The Sorley Boy McDonnell was an amazing man and Ulster Scot here in Dalriada.

[JanKowalski-bdrv]

So sad that was hardly short of genocide the British erased their language culture and stole their land those earls were cowards to they should have fought back again

[DougFenders]

They left their people behind to the mercy of their new masters and hastened the demise of what was left if gaelic ireland no thing to be cekebrated or sung about about this shameful episode in our sad history these earls pride was more important to them than their country or people.

[kev]

Imagine if the O'Neills etc came back to claim their lands. Did this happen